Riptide Chronicle
by coffeepot
Summary: Each of our boys has to tell a story...well they vary from their point of view. Just take the time to read some of them...from silly to dramatc.
1. Chapter 1

The Riptide Chronicle

Part I

The story of our friendship is so long that we cannot squash into a single tale. That's why we decided to write a kind of chronicle, from the beginning, until today. You can read a few essential stories, from the point of view of the narrator.

You see it will never get boring because you know how different our characters are…like fire and water, heaven and earth and what the heck…like science and fist fight!

But each of us will have the chance to tell you the stories from his angle and believe me…we had a lot of fun while doing this! But as it ought to be there were some hot-bottom issues as well!

All that counts is what comes out at the end…this is a phrase, the politicians like to adopt at many occasions. So, I would say just give it a try and believe me, the result is exciting!

Nick Ryder

1. The Beginning

Nick:

Cody and I, we were grown together like Siamese twins in this awful war in Vietnam. I can't say it in another way…I mean, in a war with all its cruelty, contempt for mankind, you simply need something to cling to. Cody was my tower of strengths.

I don't know how it worked at all…two human beings can't be more different than we are!

Cody comes from a wealthy home. So to speak, he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Everything I had to fight and work hard for…it dropped into his lap.

I won't lie to you…when we both met, my first thought was: "Thanks a lot…just another Yuppie, whose butt I have to save out in the jungle!"

And believe me, there were more than enough of them in Nam! At that time it seemed to be very smart for people from the upper class to go to war for Glory and Country! I don't know.

But after our second service together, I had to revise my rash judgment. Cody was a real comrade. He was everything but a coward!

We had a real bad duty and I had to make a forced landing with my chopper because enemy fire had destroyed the fuel pump. Three of the soldiers on board lost their lives. Cody and I, we were out there in the deep, green, unbearable humid jungle – all alone- in the middle of the enemies – waiting for our troops to come to rescue us!

Luckily, Cody wasn't hurt bad…a few scratches and a mild concussion.

Believe me, I am not squeamish at all but I felt very shitty especially with a broken leg! But the pain was nothing compared with the torments of hell I went through because I felt responsible for the death of my comrades!

I don't know if I had made it without Cody until Colonel Johnson finally came and got us out!

Cody:

Before I'll go into detail, I want you to know that Cody Allen wouldn't have survived this war if Nick Ryder hadn't taken me under his wings!

I remember as if it was yesterday…I was a cherry boy in Nam and could present a few months of combat experience.

I was assigned to his unit and in the evening, we usually met in the officer's mess.

When I entered the smoke-filled room I became witness of a vocal dispute between Nick and a superior officer…wow, it was a hot-tempered affair!

You want to know my first feeling about Nick?

Uh, I thought what a hothead and a big mouth and that he certainly would not survive very long if he was fighting a kindred spirit to the finish.

The whole thing got out of hand and the result was a brute brawl. Suddenly there were persons involved who had nothing to do with the opponents and I'd say the hell war breaking free…must have been herd instinct or a kind of stress reduction.

I decided to pull my punches because I was new and I wasn't keen on getting into trouble!

A decision I really regret until today! As I learned later, Nick had defended a comrade who couldn't endure the stress and absolutely wasn't fit for use the next day. The poor soul had a kind of trauma and belonged to the sick bay…not to mission of war … no way!

But this stubborn Captain Nick has had this vocal discussion with, intended that the young soldier had to report for duty the next morning. Did it really have to come to that…the young man died that morning!

As soon as Nick and this Captain met that evening, Nick lunged at his superior like a Raging Bull and they were fighting again. This time without the contribution of the others because it was clear that it was a matter between Nick and the Captain.

When Nick had been through with his opponent, the superior had to be carried away.

Nick retracted into a quiet corner, a bottle of beer in his hand and there was nothing to be heard from his side for the rest of the evening.

Fortunately this incident had no consequences for him but for the first time something like admiration arose in me.

I was deeply impressed that a person was willing to risk everything…his reputation, his career, well even his life to help a person in need! That was new to me. I had always been much to occupied with myself…well, for a very, very long time my mother had made me think that I am the hub of the universe!

But Nam shook this faith to the very foundations.

Nick:

Okay, I don't want to deny it…I am a hothead sometimes, but some people like it. But I want be serious. As soon as something touches me deep inside and I think it is worth fighting for it, well then I am prepared to assume full risk. Regardless of the consequences!

This got me into trouble a lot of times…but you know, the leopard can't change its spots and unfairness is something I cannot bear…it just makes me angry!

Tommy Hansen could still be alive…he could be married and have children if this stubborn captain would have reacted like a human being…just once in his life!

Cody:

Our first mission together went off 'normal'…well, it means that we came back to the base in one piece and there were no losses to be moaned about.

I was thrilled by Nick's ability as a pilot. He was really the master of 'His Huey' and he had my full admiration.

The second mission we were unfortunately not so lucky…shot down, three comrades dead and Nick and me in the middle of enemy turf…it couldn't have been worse!

To top it all, Nick had broken a leg and even if he didn't want to admit it, he was almost incapable of acting.

But he was a stubborn as a pig at that time and you know he is until today and no matter how bad he was injured, he always pretended that it was only a scratch… you see, nothing has changed!

But his brain or should I call it his survival instinct and the will to save the ones who depend on him, worked like a watch mechanism and he told me what to do.

I didn't doubt his instructions not for a second even he is a few years younger.

I knew as long as I do what he told me, we will make it out of this mess…and we made it!

After our rescue, Nick had to take a forced break until his broken leg had healed. He was really pissed off.

I went to the Military Hospital to see him, to tell you the truth, I really missed him. I was able to smuggle a six pack of beer into his room…okay it was more than six cans and we really hit the bottle!

Uh, the nurse wasn't pleased at all.

Nick's biggest concern was the question, whoever would take care of me until he was back on duty…typical Ryder!

Since that day, we have a one-to-one relationship! There is something that binds us…it is stronger than everything I ever felt and I wish I could put it into words.

Nick:

After Cody and I were back from Nam we spent two full days in a cathouse in New York. We really stayed out late boozing nearly until unconsciousness! To be honest, I can't hardly remember this time…I must have had a kind of mental blackout.

The only thing I remember is the fact that I thought I'd die when I woke up at the third day! I felt incredible sick and that gave me a good scare! I mean, you survive Nam and back at home you kill yourself celebrating! Man, I don't know if all the returning soldiers reacted like we did but I am quite sure a lot of them would tell a similar story!

By the way I really hadn't known where to go after we had landed in New York.

My mother had passed away during my second year in Nam and my grandma had died a few months before I came back.

Okay, my uncle Eustache was still alive at that time but we had no contact. I had seen him for the last time at my Mom's funeral.

So it was very easy for me to accept Cody's proposal to extend our stop in New York.

Cody:

After all those years I still get a headache when I think about those two days…I guess I had an alcohol poisoning and I am sure, Nick had the same as well!

Believe me, the women in this establishment were…uh…top-notch! But Nick and I, we spent our time in bed…without the ladies! Not what you might think now…we were drinking, smoking, laughing and crying and we were talking a lot of nonsense! I admit we were both really over it!

My Mom was totally piqued because I didn't came home straight…she couldn't understand it.

But I wanted to stay together with Nick…he was…no he is like a brother to me and he was more important than my family!

He had taught my things which are essential in the real life. Things like loyalty, trust and friendship!

All I had learned at home…good manners, small talk and all those superficialities who nobody really needed had moved deep in the back of my awareness.

2. Our time at the Military Police

Nick:

After Cody and I were more or less 'clear 'in our heads after three days, we decided to stay together some longer.

It was okay for me. As I told you before, there was nobody waiting for me.

Cody had a family, a nest and it made me incredibly proud…no it made me happy as Larry that he wanted to spent his time with me.

I never spent a thought how his family felt about it.

Cody:

Wow, my Mom was startled and kind of angry, perhaps a little sad as well. She would have liked to present me as the hero who had fought for his country and who had made it back.

There were lots of occasions for her to do so…coffee parties, Bridge evenings and a lot more. She is a nice Lady, really but she tends to take all these unnecessary things for vital…sorry Mom that I have to say that! You know how much I love you!

After some back and forth, Nick and I decided to make an application at the Military Police.

We were both fit and sane and there was absolutely no reason not to take us. Besides Nick was highly decorated for his efforts in Nam and so we became members of the MP!

Nick:

Becoming MP's was a wet idea even it was born when we finally were sober again…but it wasn't a big deal.

We both needed a constant in our lives…see, when you come home after you had spent months or wore, years in an awful war everything has changed. Nothing is the same…not your friends, not the goddamned life! I know it sounds worn-out but it is the truth.

Without Cody on my side I would have never managed it…I'm sure I would have went to the dogs!

Being MP's simply meant to have a regular income, we were respected and off the streets! It's very simple, isn't it?

Cody:

Joining the MP was a kind of interim solution…well for me and Nick had problems as well especially at the beginning of our 'career'.

He isn't the type of man who likes to be commanded. In Nam, he had seen too many comrades die, because of stupid orders from bigoted officers.

But he all in all he put up a good show at the MP…except from two, three or perhaps four smaller bloopers and this time it was me who saved his butt more than once. But it wasn't a matter of survival…more a matter of discipline!

Nick:

Boy, oh boy! Without Cody I certainly would have spent most of the time in military prison! It's a good thing that he is so reluctant.

Most of the time I act much too impetuous and that brings me into the scrape, you know.

Luckily I'm wiser now and I think before I get going…well at least I try. I guess it was Cody's good influence…Thank you Buddy!

3. Even The Best Time Has To End

Nick:

Of course Cody and I had our struggles! Sometimes we really crashed into each other. But we were always able to fix it again.

There was only one exception and it was nearly the death of our friendship.

One fine day, Cody presented me the hard facts that he had quit the service at the MP! He told it to me casually, just about the way you tell a stranger who asked you what time it is…I know it is a lame compare but it felt like that.

Wow, for a moment I thought that I would lose the ground! I couldn't think straight. My second impulse was to knock him down…understandable, or not?

He tried to explain it to me…he said he needed a new perspective for his life and that the job as an MP had become boring and didn't satisfy his needs any longer.

I was royally pissed…

"What about me?" I asked him with the last amount of self-control.

"Uh Nick, you are really predestinated for this kind of work. You are a great MP…but please understand I can't do this any longer!"

"Well it comes really unexpected for me Pal…I need some time to get used to this! When do you leave?"

"I'm going to take the first plane tomorrow morning."

My breath caught…I hadn't thought that he would leave me so quick. He didn't even give me the time to grapple with the situation!

My emotions went haywire! I had a murder of a rage but I felt panic rising as well! I really didn't see how I should live without Cody!

But most of all I felt broken, deprived…I don't know but there are no words to describe my emotions properly.

Cody was the one who had given me back my trust into humans again and now he destroyed it in a few seconds without feeling a trace of guilt! I felt betrayed and used!

Cody:

My decision to quit the MP came very spontaneous, I know. But at a certain point I had enough only to work just for the money, no matter what job it was. I wanted to earn my living and have fun with the work I had to do.

The life of an MP is only 20% fun. The rest is fight and unquestioning obedience! Not enough for me to do it for the rest of my life!

Additionally a very guilty conscience had started to torture me a few weeks ago…I was ashamed because I hadn't seen my Mom since my return from Nam…so one thing led to another.

From a present-day perspective, I know that my behavior back then was beyond excuse.

Today I think that I fled…I fled from my memories, I fled from my life but most of all I fled from Nick Ryder!

I will never forget the look in his eyes…hurt, troubled…shattered deep inside his soul that was still recovering from the hell he had gone through!

After our conversation, Nick vanished without another word. I don't know where and how he spent that night.

The next morning he came back, out of nowhere.

He shook my hand and he appeared quite cool when he said: "I wish you the best Cody…I had a great time with you. Who knows, perhaps our path's cross again! Take care of you!"

Something was broken…the invisible bond between us was torn and deep inside I knew that it was my fault.

Until today, I have no explanation or excuse why I acted so cruel.

Perhaps I was afraid of Nick's presence…maybe I was scared on how much I depended on him. Oh yes ,I really depended on him- in many ways.

Probably I wanted to proof myself that I was able to live without him.

Years later he confessed that saying these few parting words had taken more strength than I could ever imagine.

Well they had caused a deep sadness deep inside me and my plans to return to the fold and start an entirely new life were destined to fail! I simply didn't understand it at that time!

Nick:

From one minute to the other, my whole life had changed radically! I don't know how I spent the rest of my service at the MP. Sure, I know what my job was and I did it…but I don't know how I could bear it without Cody…I missed him so much!

I didn't extend my contract even though they held out the prospect of career for me. The Army really didn't want to let me go and that's why I couldn't stand the temptation to join the Reserves.

To test the newest choppers three times a year for a few weeks isn't that bad, especially when you get good money for having fun and everybody who knows me will understand how much that means to me.

Flying is my life but I had to bury my biggest dream to have my own helicopter one fine day, when Cody had left me. By the way I had buried a lot more that day…my faith into friendship and sincerity and finally, I really succeeded in pretending that Cody Allen had never been a part of my life!

Cody:

My arrival at home was celebrated appropriately and I was handed around like a piece of cream cake!

My Mom pulled all her strings to lodge me in an office because I had told her right from the beginning that studying was out of the question!

But desk work was definitely not my thing and so none of her efforts were crowned with success because I packed all the jobs in…

At first I was amused how my Mom tried to hook me up with girls of good families and I played along because I didn't want to disappoint her and it distracted me from thinking.

But after a while it became more and more grotesque and after I had disclosed that I wasn't willing to marry and have children…well not in this phase of my life, she reacted very keen for her usual behavior. I think it was the first time we were fighting!

Well I had the whole night to think how my life should go on and finally I decided to move to California and live on a boat.

I know it sounds childish and immature…probably it was.

Well I inherited my love for the sea from my Grandpa and this wonderful human had left me a nice sum of money as well. And this money was waiting for me.

Well I was able to put my plans into operation and it didn't take long until I had found what I was searching for.

Suddenly I found myself in Harbor on a cabin cruiser called Riptide.

I tried a lot to earn my living, really…including a job as insurance agent. But I don't want to go into details…it's a bit embarrassing!

When I sat on deck of my boat in the evenings and watched the sun dipping into the ocean, Nick Ryder started to creep into my thoughts with increased regularity.

I had suppressed all the memories…the good ones and the bad ones – and the painful ones as well, because deep in my heart I knew that I had made a terrible mistake.

I was sure that Nick would never forgive me!

Nick:

When I finally arrived at my uncles house after 10 hours in an uncomfortable bus I had to realize that nobody was at home.

The door was closed and somehow everything seemed eerie…kind of dead.

I put down my possessions that were stuffed in a single Army duffle bag and went over to the house next door to ask where I could find my uncle.

The sad news hit me hard…Uncle Eugene had unexpectedly passed away only six days ago and he was already buried.

They had tried to reach me but they couldn't…The last time I had seen my uncle was years ago when we had carried my Mom to her grave!

No it was official! I was alone…nobody left I could tell 'family'!

The neighbors very nice, they asked me to come in and have a cup of coffee. But I wasn't in the mood. So they gave me the front door key and a letter from the local notary.

I decided to spent the night in a hotel nearby…I was not able to endure the melancholy of an empty house…the house I had spent the bigger part of my youth…with my Mom, Granny and uncle Eugene and all of them had simply died away!

The next day, the notary informed me that Eugene had left me the house and that an elderly couple was interested to buy it.

So I sold the house and as a consequence, the last connection to my roots!

With the proceeds of the house sale in my pocket…well it was a check…my old dream to buy a helicopter woke up again.

I started to search my wallet for a snippet I had inserted a few months ago. It was a notice of a junkyard in Pasadena where they sold dumped Army choppers! Not that I ever imagined to be able to buy a chopper…I just had kept this small piece of paper with the address for my peace of mind.

Well now things had changed from one minute to the other and even though the reason was very sad, I headed straightaway to Pasadena.

When I saw the Mimi for the first time I fell in love with her head over heels…the rest was just paper work!

Uh, Uncle Eugene I owe you a lot and when we see us again in another life, I'll pay you back for what you have done for me.

But I don't want to lie to you… right now I'm not in a hurry to meet you, uh! I think I'll wait a few years longer…sorry I hope you understand. Do you remember, when I was a dwarf, you taught me to tell the truth – always- so I think you can forgive me that I am that straight! Thank you Uncle Eugene!

Well the money I had was just enough to make the pink Lady capable of flying again and my decision was firm…I would enter into the aero freight traffic!

Chance Had Thrown Us Together Again

Cody:

I wasn't far away from sinking into deep depressions when an invitation jittered into the house…well on my boat.

The veterans of the unit I had served in invited me to a meeting nearby. At first I wanted throw this letter into the dustbin…but the more I thought about it, the more appealing was the idea of some positive distraction!

I didn't want to confess to myself that I wished to meet Nick there…I hoped for it but I was afraid of it as well. No wonder after my lousy performance!

But I gathered all my courage and accepted the invitation.

Nick:

Okay, I had never imagined that the aero freight traffic business could be so difficult! Obviously I had been a little too euphoric…nobody waited for me to come along and carry his goods...and damned, Mimi's exterior didn't really help to let the number of my charges jolt up to astronomical heights!

To make a long story short…Mimi's maintenance and upkeep engulfed the money faster than I was able to earn it.

I was not even able to afford a room! I worked and slept into the Mimi. It was a hard time but I didn't want to miss a single day!

The fact that the invitation for the reunion of the veterans reached me was a little wonder because if you have no room, you have no address.

But I had indicated the address of a Fast Food Restaurant nearby and my mail was delivered there.

Well this Fast Food Restaurant was my second home…after Mimi and grace to Stella the warmhearted waitress, I was allowed to take my daily shower and shave there…early in the morning before the big hurry.

Not that you think that Stella was my girlfriend or something like that! She was just a good friend…a very good, motherly friend.

It was her, who encouraged me to go to this reunion even though the thought to cross Cody's path there, caused me the feeling of panic!

But Stella went on and on to me…it had felt like at least ten hours… and finally I agreed.

Cody:

The day of the reunion was a strange one. I woke up at 5a.m. This is a time when I comfortably turn around and allow myself a little dose more of my beauty sleep!

But this day was not like the others when I simply lived for the moment.

A trip over the ocean with a load of tourists here… some water sky tour with the Ebbtide there…no matter what.

But I was kind of shaken that special day and when I finally entered the hotel where the reunion took place, my first thought was…ESCAPE!

It was incredibly loud and crowded there but the moment I entered the party hall I found myself with a bottle of beer in my hand and a talkative veteran at my side.

So I did what I could do best…a little small talk here, a few jokes there…but I was kind of absent-minded! Today I know it better…I was only looking for Nick and suddenly he stood here, only a few feet away from me…Oh Lord, I really didn't know whether to laugh or to cry!

Nick:

I had kept open all options until the last minute.

Do I go there or do I stay away…do I get terribly drunk or do I hatch a fight somewhere else!

Of course I went to the reunion…it was the first time I really realized how lucky I was! There were hundreds of veterans there…they all had made it home like me. But a lot of them were in a bad shape and I started to feel abashed for my ungratefulness!

My body was unscathed…why the hell did I made my life miserable myself?

And suddenly, I saw him …he stood there among all those people who had survived the hell like we both had but he seemed to be lost.

My heart was beating so fast that I thought it would jump out of my chest: "Cut and run!" My inner voice tried to convince me. Go away from these people, the painful memories but above all go away from Cody Allen! I really didn't know how to endure our reencounter!

But I stood there like paralyzed and didn't know what to do…luckily Cody took the initiative and made the first step.

He approached me and said barely audible: "Nick…it's so good to see you!" Well it sounds not very dramatic but these few words set free a wave of emotions and I embraced him so tight that I had to retain myself not to break his ribs in my joyfulness!

"Yes man…I am happy as well to see you again!" Was all I could manage!

"Let's go away from here!" Cody proposed. "Are you here with a car?"

"Uh, not really…I'm here with a helicopter!"

"You are joking…no you can't be serious!"

"I'm not joking…if you can find wheels we can go to the airfield and I will show her to you!"

"You will show me whom?"

"Well the Mimi…that's the name of my helicopter!"

"Okay then let's take my car and meet the Mimi…come on what are you waiting for Nick?"

At first, Cody was dumbfounded.

"What do you say?"

"Good Lord…Nick…I have never seen something ugly like that before…not in my entire life!"

Well that was Cody Allen! He never lied …even if it meant to be impolite!

"Thanks Cody. That really builds me up! But you know what? The exterior isn't important and overestimated too often…all that counts are the inner values! Believe me in this respect, Mimi is devastating!

"Uh Nick, please don't get me wrong but when I look at her, I can hardly imagine that she is able to make it more than ten feet over the ground!"

"Hey Cody, listen…I flew from Pasadena over here and I flew in the air! So, if you want to, we can make a short sightseeing flight!"

Thanks Nick…but no…I mean, I believe you…you don't have to proof it!"

"Aw Cody…you are afraid…that's incredible! How many times, you flew with me Cody?"

"Oh. We are not talking about your abilities here! I would entrust my life to your care at any time and you know that! It's more this pink monstrosity that scares me!"

"Cody you are really wrong about the Mimi! But if I have to prove otherwise, it's up to you to gather your courage and give it a try!"

"You are right Nick…but not now! By the way, where do you stay?"

"Uh…I sleep in the Mimi!"

"You sleep in your helicopter…okay for the time you are here right? That's okay."

"Cody, in Pasadena I sleep in the Mimi as well…I don't want to lie on you…but I work, live and sleep in the Mimi! At the moment I am not able to afford a flat. All of Mimi's cosmetic repairs and her upkeep cost a lot of money!"

"That's no surprise! Listen, I guess you come with me. I live on a boat…it is called Riptide.

"So your dream of an own boat really came true? That's great Cody…respect!" I was kind of surprised.

"Well like you made your dream of an own helicopter come true. Come on let's go we have a lot to talk about!"

Cody:

When I saw him standing there a very bad feeling came over me…what had I done to him and more important why?

Without really thinking I reached for him. It wasn't more than correct…after all it was me that had made a real dog's dinner of our unique friendship more than a year ago!

Our welcome was a little cool…only for a few seconds and suddenly it was there again…the feeling of closeness and trust…it was simply indescribable!

We cleared away and he proudly presented Mimi to me…Oh man, I was scared to death…ugly is not sufficient to describe her. But Nick loved her and as you all know, over the years I have learned to like her and appreciate her advantages. You know: Beauty is power a smile is its sword…I think Mimi has a great smile!

Nick was disarmingly upfront this evening…as usual. He didn't even try to deny that he was living from hand to mouth and I was really shocked that he had to live in his helicopter!

But you know Nick isn't pretentious as long as he is allowed to live his life.

But all this wasn't the reason why I asked him shortly later to join the detective business…not at all!

Well I needed at lot of persuasiveness but at the end it was worth the effort…even though it was hard sometimes and we had to fight some battles…I don't regret a single day and I would do it again…anytime!

By the way, Nick never spoke about our last evening at the MP…not a single word came over his lips and he never blamed me for it.

That is a character trait I really love…Nick isn't unforgiving - he can forgive.

Once he forgave you…the affair is off the cards and he will never mention it again…that's Nick!

Nick:

We talked until late at night…about the old times and comrades and about Cody's new job. He had just started his own business as a private eye!

I told him about my work as pilot flying goods around and that I had joined the Reserves.

Suddenly, Cody made me the suggestion to stay in King Harbor and become his partner.

He was really obsessed about this idea and he brought the big guns in to convince me. But to be honest…I wasn't keen at all…the main reason why I was so upstage was my fear. I was afraid that Cody could hurt me again just like the last time.

That was something I never wanted to experience again, believe me.

Better a few hundred miles away from him than getting used to have him at my side again…and then getting ditched again and falling into a huge hole…believe me the last hole I fell in was gigantic and it took me a long time to reach the light again!

So I asked for some respite and we came to the compromise that I would stay in King Harbor a few days longer.

Seriously I enjoyed being so close to him…I felt entirely happy.

I slept in a real bed in a small but comfortable cabin. I lived on solid food…not only junk food and coffee like before…we cooked together…all in all it was the paradise. But the best of all, I felt secure and finally at home!

5. The Start OF The PI Business

"Did you come to a decision Nick? Do you join the PI business?" Cody asked me two days later again.

"To be honest Cody…I cannot imagine it…I mean to spy out disloyal husbands doesn't sound promising to me! Who said if someone will hire us at all? I mean…I haven't the foggiest notion if there is a need at all!"

"Don't worry Nick…PI's are always required. We only have to make up a concept how we go on!"

"Uh, that easy…!"

"Come on, if the business doesn't work well, I can sail tourists out and you can make sightseeing flights with especially brave specimens! That will work in any case!"

Okay…he had hooked me now but I finally agreed after an unpleasant incident.

I was looking out for a suitable place in King Harbor to 'park' the Mimi. It shouldn't be too far away from the boat so that I had kind of surveillance…that was all very theoretical and just for the case that I would manage to make up my mind and join the PI business!

As I told you before I had inspected such a place nearby and was on my way back to the Riptide.

As soon as I was on board, I felt that something was wrong and when I entered the salon I became witness of a sturdy fight between Cody and a very furious stranger.

Cody didn't cut a fine figure and I had to intervene. The stranger and I exchanged a few unfriendly punches and at the end I threw him overboard!

"Is this your imagination of a successfully solved case Cody?"

"I don't know what is wrong with it Nick! His wife was my client and paid my fee. Nobody could have known that he would freak out like that!"

"Well Cody, how would you have reacted? Would you have sent flowers and a thank-you note to the person who had cooked your goose?"

"Probably not…but I like the idea!"

"Cody, seriously…if such an easy case ends up in a fighting like that…what will happen if you get into trouble with the real bad guys, uh?"

"Okay, it looks as if I could use a little help Pal!"

"That's exactly what I am thinking!"

Does it mean you'll stay and join the business?"

"Yeah… I guess so. But there is a condition attached to it!"

"Just name it Nick!"

"No sentimental stories…no divorce dramas no jealous husbands or wives and so on and so on! Nothing like that…do you think you could live with that?"

"You have my word of honor Nick…that is great, now we are partners…equal business partners!"

Nick:

That's how the whole thing started!


	2. Chapter 2

Riptide Chronicle

Part II

6. Every Beginning Is Difficult

Nick:

The first time in the PI business proved to be more difficult than we had imagined…okay than Cody had imagined in his euphoria.

Sure, probably we couldn't have saved ourselves from cases, if we had accepted the ones, I had insiste, we wouldn't take…never! You know everything around love, pain and jealousy.

But we had a clear agreement and Cody kept his promise…with a heavy heart.

Besides, we regularly had to face another severe problem while we were investigating…the King Harbor Police.

For them we were only two volley-ball playing beach boys who passed their time, playing private investigators to avoid boredom!

They let us feel that very subtle! In their opinion we were only joke figures…no trace of good will at all from their side!

Two sentences burned into my brain!

"No matter of police and Piss off…that's a matter of police!"

It was really hard to work and we had huge difficulties finding out essential information. Fo example the owner of a license plate number, his or her address and so on…and so on! It could have been so easy for the police to support us…especially in cases that were 'Not a matter of police"!

There is one man who grew on us in a very, very special way…LT Theodore Quinlan…a real …nice guy…

But that's another story…or better make it three or four…I cannot count all our collisions!

As a matter of fact, we had a lack of technical Know How and of the convenient equipment.

To tell you the truth…I was sick of being a PI after a few weeks!

We hardly kept the wolf from the door and the only constant in our life were the regularly visits of the King Harbor Community Hospital! Somehow Cody and I took turns…it made me want to run a mile! Why did each case ended in a fight or worse in a shooting?

We were forced to raise our health insurance to pay the medical treatments and the meds.

At the end we missed that money to pay other things.

And now Murray Bozinsky got into the game. Please don't get me wrong, to take Murray aboard…it's ambivalent, isn't it? Well to make him the third partner has nothing to do with his brilliant abilities. That's only a side benefit.

7. Murray-Boz-Bozinsky

Nick:

I want to start by telling you how we met Murray…at the time when Cody and I were MP's we got the order to pick a certain Colonel Murray Bozinsky up and transfer him to the military prison.

The first impression I got of Murray? Well I'd say it were his huge eyeglasses especially the way they were fixed…I mean he had used tape and he still does! Heaven knows how he manages it to break the frames. Probably it's because he regularly fell asleep in front of his computer…glasses still on his nose!

The second thing I realized was a bandage on his right hand. That's part of another story and I talk about it later.

Well, Cody and I flew over there with a chopper to pick him up and bring him to the prison.

But somehow Cody and I had the impression that a guy like him wasn't able to any kind of injustice and we asked him to tell us what had happened.

That was the first time we were allowed to enjoy his hiccup attacks. Murray was so upset when he told us the story from his point of view.

He had slapped a superior officer into the face and therefore he was sent to prison. Litvak, that's the name of his opponent, was a villain and Boz had seen through his foul play.

Litvak had pulled out all the stops to discredit Murray and after a hot discussion Boz had lost his composure! That was the first time he had bruised his thumb.

Cody's and my sense of justice violently revolted in face of this outrageous inequity and it was not a question at all that Murray wouldn't survive a single day in prison…so we decided to interfere in his problems.

At the end, Murray was fully rehabilitated and it was Litvak who was imprisoned!

By the way, Cody and I helped Dr. Bozinsky to his very first night of love…it was in New Orleans…he swoons over it until today!

After this incident we lost contact somehow and to be honest, Murray disappeared out of our minds…until he suddenly called us out of a clear sky! He was in trouble again.

At that time Murray was working for an enterprise only a few miles away from King Harbor. He was the head of the computer department and did some research as well…one fine day he had found out that his employers were involved in criminal activities and now his life was in danger.

To make it short, he asked us for help…so why us? Well I think we were the only people he trusted although we hadn't seen for a long time.

Murray:

Well I know that I shouldn't talk like that…Cody and Nick think that this slang doesn't suit me well but I was up to my knees in mud…these criminals played a mean game and naïve like I am, I had helped them to do so!

But once I am angry uh…nothing can stop me then! I properly blew them up…well too bad that I was in the thick of it!

At that time I had no friends and the only people I remembered spontaneously were Cody Allen and Nick Ryder! I had really admired them for their courage and guts when they had helped me in the 'Litvak-Case'.

Well I knew that they were running a detective agency in King Harbor…I think they wrote me a Christmas card and they mentioned it …well I run the part of my computer that was still working after my outburst of anger and found out their telephone number…the rest is history!

They bailed me out…no, that doesn't hit the nail…they saved my life as well as a small part of my equipment.

For the second time they helped me to get back my good reputation and saved me from landing into prison! Thank you guys!

But the coolest thing, they took me to their home and what was planned as a temporary arrangement became a steady state!

Hey…I don't want to exaggerate but that was when Murray Bozinsky's 'Real Life' started!

Nick:

If I only smell the tang of injustice, it makes me angry and I freak out! I don't like it to treat humans unfair. By the way, we have principles we have to follow. Okay, in our business it is a balancing act sometimes and normally we always have one foot in prison but that's another story!

Murray needed our help and he got it…the further development of this affair surprised even me.

Cody:

Murray…Dr. Murray Bozinsky…for me one of the greatest wizards…kind of scatterbrained genius but a fine chap through and through! He is too good to be true. Point of honor that we helped him!

But at that time, I hadn't dreamt that he would become the third partner in our agency. The only association to Murray…the pure CHAOS and Nick shared my opinion.

8. The First Weeks With Murray Onboard

Cody:

Murray simply didn't know where to go and therefore it wasn't more than fair to let him stay on the Riptide with us for now.

He was content with the bench in the salon and the few possessions he had saved didn't need much space.

Well he had a room in town but Nick and I didn't allow him to go back there…not before the bad guys were behind the bars and the whole affair finished.

Murray was so happy being with us…you could feel it and he beamed like a Cheshire cat when he was on the way with us.

So I took Nick aside and asked him about his opinion that Murray could move in with us for serious.

First, Nick was skeptical as always. He addressed the space problem and three adult men living together on a small boat would mean the end of privacy.

"We are only two and a half men, Nick! Boz only counts to 50 %!"

"Okay Cody but where do you suppose he will sleep? He cannot always take the bench in the salon…that's really cruel!"

"I thought he could have your cabin Nick!"

"My…my cabin? Interesting idea, But where do I sleep then?"

"Well I thought you could move in my cabin…it's nearly double sized!"

"You and me? Together in one cabin? You can't be serious Cody! Forget it! The sooner the better!"

"Good Lord Nick, don't be such a drama queen! What of it?"

"If that goes the circuit in King Harbor…you know the people!"

"Nick we spent a very long time together in one room. You can't have forgotten it."

"Of course not but we were in a war at the other side of the world and later we shared a room during the MP service, I know, but this is King Harbor Pal!"

"So you want to leave Murray to his own devices then? Just because you feel awkward to sleep in the same room with me! That's very selfish! You have seen him in the last few days…he really needs someone to take care for him!"

"Oh, Cody, don't do that! It's absolutely not fair to argue like that! But you are right. We can't let him live like he did before. Okay, I agree but we need rules…a lot of rules!"

Nick:

That Murray needs a guardian was evident when we first met…he needs protection, if necessary you have to protect him from himself!

I guess I have never met such a clumsy guy before…it's incredible! But I love him and I would give and do everything to help and protect him…to make him happy!

But the first time of our living community was hard and I lost my head at several occasions!

Murray:

The moment the guys offered me to move in for serious…well forever and to live with them, oh man…I wanted to embrace the whole world! These hot shots obviously had no problem to take me in…and it didn't upset them to show themselves with me in public…wow this was so BOSS!

Perhaps I should have told them the plain truth about the rest of my equipment that was temporarily stored in a warehouse.

Anyway, their eyes became bigger and bigger…with every new box that was delivered!

"Boz, where do you want to stow all these things?"

In my cabin of course, Nick!"

Ah, I see! And where do you want to sleep?"

"Come on Nick, in my cabin as well!"

"Okay Mur!"

That was the dialogue Nick and I had. He really tried his best to stay calm but his cursing every time he stumbled over one of my spare part, which were dispersed over the boat…due to the lack of room, taught me better!

It became really bad when I had finished the Roboz and he had initial problems to follow my instructions…

It was a technical wonder how the little orange fellow swept over the boat and tried to do what he had been told…he really tried but he had huge problems concerning fluids, especially fluids in cans!

Most of the time, their content landed on Nick! I'd say in 99 of 100 cases. I know Cody and I were not fair when we laughed about it but it was too funny! My brain tells me that it is impossible but sometimes I catch myself thinking that Roboz has developed a kind of 'private life'!

Cody:

The first time with Murray on board?

That's a real good question but to answer it entirely would probably go beyond the scope.

I try to say it sententiously…ARDUOUS!

There were days, when I barely recognized my boat…our home! I had to disembark and convince myself that this converted junkyard was called Riptide!

Nick:

If you manage to live together with Murray longer than two weeks without committing a murder…then nothing on earth can ever throw you off the track! Believe me I know what I am talking about.

Trying to reach the kitchen at night because you are thirsty or something like that proved to be life threatening… especially without illumination that could have set the whole pier into red alert!

Compared with me, our genius only feels comfortable when there is chaos around…it took me a lot of strengths and much more composure to convince him that every piece should have its place. But we managed to meet us half-way!

The Roboz-thing wasn't that easy…at some time I really started to take his attacks against me as very personal! Can you imagine it? Nick Ryder has to put up a fight against a 'cocky robot'…perhaps renitent would hit the nail better! That's incredible and it nearly drove me insane!

This radio-controlled guy made me see red…principally all fluids he could get, landed over MY head and he blew me at least two dates doing that!

Okay, no hard feelings here…I don't bear grudges! Today I couldn't imagine a life without him and Murray at all…well perhaps I could live without Roboz…interesting thought!

9. Three Men On A Boat And How A Thunderstorm Can Cool The Air

Cody:

Controversy…a subject I spontaneously could tell a few stories about. Really too much to tell them all! So I confine myself to the most important ones…well from my point of view.

I'm sure Nick wil not agree. You know he can be damned stubborn from time to time. Okay you see we have a real high atmosphere of constructive debate!

What bugs me most is the fact that certain persons can't follow the simplest rules! What the hell makes it so difficult to close a door when you leave…I mean to close it properly?

Every child knows it but there a certain adults who are still in their infancy regarding this!

I know, this might sound incredibly pedantic but everyone who has ever found his home devastated knows what I am talking about!

And when the insurance company refused to pay for the damage because there were no traces of burglary, well I have to admit…I was kind of pissed off!

I guess the burglars were really keen on the fact that the Riptide wasn't closed…by the way the insurance company was as well, that's for sure…thank you Nick!

Nick:

Don't get me wrong…Cody is a great guy, the best friend you can have on earth! But…he can be nerve-racking pedantic!

It's not as if he were an obsessive bigot concerning tidying up! It's more the opposite…he leaves his stuff lying around. Clothes, shoes, books and so on. It really doesn't matter at all.

But he tends to criticize people for exactly this imperfection and that's not acceptable for me!

Okay I forgot to lock the Riptide …it was only once in all the time we live there together! But he will hold it against me still in fifty years…of that I am sure! He can be really nit-pick sometimes!

I always try to be tolerant. I don't say a single word when he uses my shaver…I say nothing when it's his turn to do the shopping and he forgets it and our dinner unavoidably consists of peanut butter and dry toast…really! That doesn't drive me up the wall but I go really mad when he 'borrows' my tools and 'forgets' to put it back where it belongs…well that makes me furious! It takes me hours to recollect it!

Murray:

Okay, I think that's a topic where I should keep quiet… you all know how the Riptide looks like when I'm working! And I'm working all the time…so to say! Well I have some problems with the Roboz here and there…I mean problems with the programming. Isn't it normal that things tumble over? And the spare parts for my equipment and the cable drums and screens…we really need all these things to solve our cases! It makes no sense to put them away when you need them ten minutes later!

It simply isn't worth the effort…

I admit my obsession for telephones in all versions even the less common ones wasn't okay!

It was simply too much and they were ringing all the time and at the end we didn't know which one to pick up. And yes, Nick looked really stupid with the frog at his ear!

But all in all I follow the rules…At least I try!

When it is may turn to do the kitchen, I take it very serious.

Luckily I was able to convince the guys of my nearly not existing art of cookery. Most of the time it is Nick who prepares the meals…he is an excellent cook and it is really the best for our health if I keep away from the stove! The dish washing is my department and thanks Roboz I just waltz through it!

Thank God there is a supermarket next door where I can buy all the dishes that don't 'survive'!

Well, the programming of my orange colored friend isn't perfect…perhaps I should go on without his help?

But I have learned one thing despite of all the struggles we had: Nothing and believe me really nothing can unhinge a friendship like ours! Sometimes it simply needs a good scolding to blow away the brewing trouble! And afterwards it's so much better…really!

10. The Super Macho Competition

Nick:

It all started really harmless when I picked Cathy up on the beach. I was on my morning jog when I saw this sweet, small red haired girl straying around…okay she had celebrated a boisterous party with her so called friends and after some alcohol and some drugs she had simply lost her bearing's.

As a gentleman I took her to the Riptide and after she has had a hot shower and two cups of strong coffee, I brought her home.

We talked a little and after I had read her the riot act, we made an appointment for dinner.

Well we had a kind of relationship…nothing serious but Cathy was the first woman after Nam I allowed to come so close to me! For me it was like regeneration!

Somehow after this incident, our competition started.

Temporarily, we kept a list about our dates, really! I know that is absolutely ridiculous! Well we didn't miss out anything, that's for sure and sometimes we intruded into each other's preserves!

Like I did when Murray fell in love with a dolphin coach…

Murray:

Uh, Jody…I was madly in love with her…well I thought I was. Wow, she was a class of her own!

In my unlimited naivety, I really believed that she was interested in ME…I mean interested in me as a man…you know.

Well when I introduced her to Cody and Nick, the luck had turned…unfortunately not to good account for me!

Cody:

Jody was a sweetheart and Murray couldn't stop to stare at her. Well we all know that Boz can be quite clumsy. But with Jody around, his coordination deficits redoubled and Nick and I had all the efforts to save Murray from the worst!

What I immediately noticed when we first met was the fact that Jody was obviously highly interested in Nick…unfortunately Murray didn't understand the clear signs. It would have saved us a lot of trouble!

Nick:

We talk about Jody, the dolphin trainer? Aw…Murray nearly forced us to this dolphin show in Marine Land…not because of the animals, no, just to introduce Jody to us.

She was supposed to help us with our current case. A colleague of her had been murdered.

I don't want to blow smoke…Jody was a pretty young woman and under other circumstances I would have summoned up all my charms to wangle her!

But I realized Murray's feelings about her and she was taboo for me!

But to be honest, I wasn't successful to resist her offer to give me important information about the case during a common dinner.

Despite Cody's concerns, I finally agreed.

Of course, I didn't tell Murray about it and in retrospect that was a huge mistake. For me it was a pure dinner discussion.

Who could have thought that she was kidnapped after a nearly irresistible evening where she had made her intentions more than clear? Of course I had to reject her proposals and believe me it demanded a lot of composure…and back on the Riptide…alone, I had to let the cat out of the bag and tell the truth! It was really hard, believe me!

I'll never forget Murray's expression…a mixture of grief, rage and huge disappointment!

"Nick Ryder, I thought you were my friend! But you tore out my heart alive!"

This sentence burned into my brain and the fact that he knocked his fist on his chest didn't made it easier…I have never felt so miserable!

Even though I had explained to Jody that we could never get together, I had the worst conscience you can have!

You know how much I like Murray, I love him more than I could love a brother and it was absolutely out of question that I could ever hurt him!

But the following days were the sheer torment! Murray treated me as if I was not existent and we really tried to avoid each other! A dead issue when you live on a small cabin cruiser!

Luckily, Jody had a kind of understanding and asked Murray for a clearing conversation!

That was my chance because Jody had confessed that it was her initiative to invite me for dinner and that I was left out!

Murray:

It was very bitter when Jody told me that I was only a good friend for her. Well what did I expect anyhow? That a woman like Jody could fall in love with a clown like me?

I couldn't hold Nick's pace that was for sure but in my wounded honor I had chosen the easiest way and put the whole blame on Nick.

Suddenly I knew what to do and believe me it was hard.

Nick sat on a wall at the pier…the affair with Jody had given him a hard time and no matter what he had tried to ease the situation and try to explain why it had gone that far, I enjoyed myself in the role of the sorehead! I hadn't given him the trace of a chance.

After I had taken place next to Nick, I ponderously started to formulate an excuse for my behavior.

Well, Nick simply put his arm around my shoulder and let out this incredible sentence.

"You know what Murray…a good friendship means that you never have to apologize!"

Wow, it still gives me the creeps…after all this time. But I have learned my lesson…never, believe me never I would allow it again that a human no matter if woman or man, could divide us again. Nobody is worth it to gamble with a friendship like ours!


	3. Chapter 3

Riptide Chronicle Part III

11. My Best Friend The Hot Head

Cody:

Our business isn't safe and you hardly can have your eyes everywhere. But it gets really difficult when your partner is a hot head like Nike!

Nick Ryder first acts before he considers the possible consequences! I would really appreciate if he would try it the other way round!

It would have saved him a lot of pain over the years.

No question at all, it is really record-breaking and surely makes a lot of impression to dive headlong on a driving car and racing on it through the streets on your stomach!

Not so funny if the person we talk about flies over several other cars after a sudden full-braking and a garden-wall finalizes the stunt…I thought I get a heart attack!

My first concern…he is dead…he must be dead! Nobody survives this madness! But this idiot was even conscious when I knelt down next to him.

The only thing I could manage was something like that: " You better keep your mouth shut Nick Ryder!"

Well this stunt really shook him and he fell out six full weeks.

There was no place on his entire body that wasn't bruised or skinned and a broken shoulder isn't really a walk in the park! His left knee was quite damaged as well and I felt really sorry for him!

But I would have never shown it because it would have been a mistake…in disciplinary respect!

The more he had to suffer, the bigger was the chance that he would think about the painful consequences for a fragment of time…before he would act like that before!

It was bad…especially for Nick because his worst nightmare is to depend on others.

And he was physically dependent for at least three weeks.

By the way, Nick isn't a good patient…when he doesn't feel good he gets moody very quick and the fact that we live together in a localized manner wasn't advantageous at all.

Nick:

Cody massively exaggerates…as usual. Must be his mother hen instinct…I don't know.

Listen I am a PI and not a bookkeeper. Cody knows that you cannot calculate the risks in our job!

When I am on a case…I do it with all my heart! If necessary I use unconventional methods: Okay the thing with the car wasn't one of my highlights…but as I told you before, all that counts are the results.

We solved the case, the villain came behind bars and we got our money! So why does my highly sensitive friend got so excited?

Murray:

That is typical for them. Cody as well as Nick always wants to run their heads against the wall…by all means.

But they are wrong…both. Of course there is absolutely no apology that Nick had risked his life so imprudent, but Cody knows about the risks of our job and he knows Nick better than any other human on earth.

Why does he has to give Nick such a hard time when the poor guy is already dashed to the ground?

I will never understand it! Perhaps it is Cody's valve to let off steam when he is worried about Nick. I am sure, there must be a scientific essay about this phenomenon…perhaps I should take it to my heart to be able to work as a mediator next time something like that will happen…and it surely will happen! You know Nick!

12. The Thing With The Sense Of Responsibility

Nick:

Dude! To keep Murray out of the dangerous things proved to be kind of difficult!

The poor guy always felt like a fifth wheel! But Murray was the brain of our agency! Without his abilities we would have never been able to solve our cases that easy.

Did I say easy? Okay perhaps that's a bit overstated but he gave us the information we needed to solve the cases quickly…stop that is moronic! I mean, why to make it quick when you get paid 200 Dollars per day? Murray…Murray, we have to talk!

No, seriously! He made all the background work. All the things Cody and I hadn't the foggiest notion about.

But Murray wanted to be like his partners…yes he wanted to fight.

Okay we couldn't keep him away very long but you know: Adversity is the school of wisdom! Well Murray needed this experience…he absolutely did not need to get cleverer!

At the end he understood that his hands were not made for a fight and believe me, that took a load off my mind!

It always hurt to snub him by saying a mission was too dangerous for him. But it is more than difficult to keep your own butt out of the mess out there…the last thing you need is someone who directly runs in the line of fire with a target on his baggy cardigan!

Murray I must confess that getting shot isn't funny at all and jumping on driving cars is incredibly dumb and both hurts like hell! So do me a big favor and don't even try it!

Cody:

Boz is a soul of man and you always have to be careful not to hurt him. I mean, Nick and I, we are not really prissy and sometimes we go at it hammer and tongs! But deep inside we know what we are feeling for each other...sometimes you have to let off steam! It took a very long time for Murray to understand it…despite his astronomical high IQ!

A few weeks after his moving in on the Riptide, Murray was kind of obsessed with the thought to be like Nick or me! He started to get dressed ridiculous for his standards…okay it was quite normal for the Californian style but it simply didn't suit him! And worse, he adopted an awful slang…frightening if you want to know.

Somehow Murray was able to convince Nick to teach him a few self defense tactics…in retur, Boz told Nick how to handle a computer.

The result was more than lousy.

Murray needed four days until he had repaired his computer and three weeks until he could use his thumb without pain again!

The only thing that amused me was the fact that Boz somehow managed it to give Nick a sidewinder while they were exercising and Nick got a nice shiner…that was funny!

Murray:

Believe me, there were times when I wished for nothing more than to be like Cody and Nick!

But what I have in excess in my head is deficient in my muscles! The guys really tried to convince me of that fact - in a very cautious way…okay as friendly as they could be and I know it was well meant but somehow it always sounded like:

"Boz, why don't you go into your cabin and feed your computer!"

I know it wasn't meant to hurt me but it did!

Mother Nature didn't stuff me with muscles like Nick has and I would have given my right hand to look like him, really! But somehow I could persuade them to take me to the external work. Unfortunately I acted as stupid as you can do and that was when I finally understood, what they had tried so hard to tell me!

The world outside was too dangerous for me and my clumsiness made me a peril for them. It was a bitter pill to swallow. But we were a great team after all…I did the brain work and Cody and Nick the rest! It worked superb.

Is the Greatest Thing At All

Nick:

If there is a good thing at all about fighting, then it is the conciliation afterwards. Listen we live together on a small cabin cruiser and it is really difficult to get some private space. It is absolutely normal to get on each other's nerves from time to time.

We can be on good terms for one, two or three weeks but then we get into a scrap because of nullities!

We never had real big problems. The only one that touched me deep inside I can recall, was the Tricor affair!

I couldn't understand why Cody and Murray were able to give up our agency that easy. Right from the beginning I told them that they would have to go without me! The Tricor fellows were so slick that it still causes me stomach cramps when I think about that time.

Cody must have been in a kind of Midlife Crisis…anyhow he called his present life into question…nothing was good enough! It hurt me like hell and we had a bad quarrel.

Listen I would have never worked…either we all act in concert or we have to go apart. Okay, Tricor had lulled Murray and Cody with their offer and I told them that I would move out! Believe me that was the most difficult decision I had ever taken. But I was intended on finding out the real background for Tricor's takeover bid…and my efforts paid off. I was able to rub Cody's and Murray's nose in Tricor's criminal deeds!

Sadly that Hub Wheeler had to die…if we had been in agreement perhaps he would be still alive!

Cody:

In retrospect the Tricor affair was a monumental stupidity! Murray and I, we were willing to get duped, really!

Well the huge offices, the technical equipment and the fifty thousand Dollars they had offered us made it easy to take a decision.

Nick couldn't work for them or better I absolutely didn't want to. At the beginning he wasn't able at all to tell us a plausible reason for his harsh refusal and of course I told him how stubborn his behavior was in my eyes!

But Nick did what he always does…he got to the bottom of it and he dug in the mud and rocked the boat!

I still blame myself for Hub's death. It wasn't necessary. Besides, Nick got shot and instead to rest, he spared no effort to 'solve the Tricor case' and bring the villains behind bars.

By the way, he saved Murray's and my life as well…en passant, so to say.

The case was really solved within two days and we decided to celebrate our success and the fact that we stayed partner with a dinner at Straightaway's.

We wanted to talk about the mistakes we had made and how we could make it better in the future…well you know how it normally works.

We have a few beers, a good meal and a cigar to top the evening off.

But Nick simply keeled over on the way to our favorite restaurant…in the middle of the road! Ypi should have witnessed the turmoil!

He simply had overtaxed himself and the wound at his side had split open…of course he hadn't told us about it! He had lost some blood but instead to ask for help, he had treated himself quite poorly and hoped that the affair would sort itself out!

At least it had taken of a life of its own!

Nick regained conscious when he was already in the King Harbor Community Hospital and he was really mad because we had taken him there for a proper treatment…Typical Nick Ryder.

When Murray or I are sick or hurting, he makes a great fuss about it… when he is crabby he simply wants to be left alone. Somehow it reminds me of a wolf…don't they back down into the woods until they are well again?

14. When We Come To Die

Nick:

Well it is out of the question that the PI business is a dangerous one. Dangerous and unpredictable!

After all it's not a desk job when you can drop the pen at 5 p.m.!

My biggest concern always was that Cody or Murray could get hurt.

Honestly, I would take a bullet for each of them…by choice, anytime. But there are situations, you simply cannot foresee and suddenly you find yourself in the middle of a mess and have to watch how your best friend gets nearly killed!

Like I had to in Cyprus Bay when Nathan Warwick shot Cody…that was a pitch-dark day.

Cody dangerously hurt and Murray heavily traumatized because he killed Nathan in self-defense!

I had to be strong for both of them but I was really over it myself…mentally. I never had such a fear in my whole life. I simply couldn't stop imagining how my life should go on without Cody! It nearly drove me crazy.

When finally a physician came and told us that Cody would make a full recovery, I nearly broke down…I will never go through a hell like that again!

There were lots of smaller wounds…too much to remember them all. Somehow we took turns…broken noses, sprained ankles, broken ribs and a lot of concussions! Honestly concussions are the nastiest ones!

Graze shots and flesh wounds are uncomfortable of course, especially if you try to cure them yourself

…I know Cody!

Broken or sprained thumbs were Murray's métier…not spectacular enough for Cody and me!

I took a lot of time to teach Murray how to make a proper fist. But after he had experienced how painful it is not to take my advice, he finally got it!

Cody:

One story really threw me off the track…a dark chapter in our friendship.

We all know how much Nick likes his mission in the Reserves and that he renders his service with full commitment…at all cost!

I asked him at least a thousand times to quit his duty! After my opinion he runs unnecessarily risks and our job is dangerous enough.

But Nick Ryder needs this adrenaline rush and if he is allowed to fly the newest choppers, he behaves like a kid shortly before the handing out of presents at Christmas.

To make it short, I wasn't able to convince him to quit the Army. He argued with the right of pension but I know him better.

Well I reluctantly accepted his decision not to give up this 'hobby'. But as you all know you do a thing a hundred times and it goes well. But then…

Murray and I got a call in the middle of the night. Well phone calls in the night never mean something good…it is the pure stress and my hair stood on edge.

A General whose name I cannot remember, called to succinctly brief us that Nick had made an emergency call during a night flight.

He obviously has had technical problems with one of these high tech helicopters and now the radio contact had broken off, the helicopter had vanished from the screens. The only thing they had were the coordinates Nick had been able to give them before all had gone…that was all they could tell us!

You know Nick has no relatives and he had named Murray and me to be informed for cases like that!

Well this sentence stands on the last side of the contract, on the bottom. Printed nearly illegible something like…inform in case of death! I forgot the right wording.

You have to fill it out because it is obligatory but nobody really apperceives it…whoever voluntarily spares a thought on his own death and damned who should be informed in the worst case?

Now we had been informed and the world collapsed on me.

Nick's helicopter had simply vanished and if that alone were not enough, it happened somewhere in the desert!

We all know the climatic conditions…lousy cold in the night and murderously hot with the first sunbeam!

After a short shower and a quick shave, Murray and I hit the road.

The barracks Nick spent his duty were about 200 miles away from King Harbor. I fully accelerated and my daring maneuvers nearly ended in disaster.

Sometime Murray couldn't stand it any longer and he shouted at me, voice filled with a mixture of despair, rage and stress.

"Cody, it won't help Nick if you try to kill us!"

Well this shortly calls me to think about the consequences of my behavior.

In my head, the thoughts were on a roller coaster.

To survive a helicopter crash is a crapshoot and I didn't kid myself…but outrageous unfair was the additional fact that the crash had taken place in the desert!

Hot during the day and cold during the night. Probably there were no water reserves on board and Nick was undoubtedly injured. All in all the worst possible signs!

When we arrived at the base, we were treated amazingly human for Army standards and after some paperwork that was up to Murray because I was trembling so badly, we were located in a small office where we got bad coffee in paper cups.

The hours were creeping but there were no usable information about Nick's whereabouts!

I had the feeling as if an iron fist would clutch at my heart when I slowly realized that I possibly wouldn't see Nick alive again!

This awareness nearly drove me over the edge!

Without Murray…I surely would have lost my head! Even though we hadn't exchanged more than a few words since our arrival, he gave me the strengths to hang on…I don't know who he made it he was surely as frantic as I was!

Periodically Murray stepped into the lion's den…well the command center to get news…to ask if they had finally found Nick.

When I nearly had given up all my hope and I was ready to believe that he was death, we got the releasing message.

They had spotted the wreck in the desert and a squadron of choppers was ready to collect the remains!

In this special moment I promised our father in heaven a lot, believe me. I have honored most of it, a few things a waiting to be done and there are two promises I really cannot keep, no matter how hard I try.

Anyhow Murray could convince the persons responsible to take us along to the crash site.

When we arrived, we had to face an awful sight…the chopper was totally destroyed, metal pieces scattered around but worst, the cockpit was empty!

It took me a few seconds to recollect my composure and I tried to consider where Nick could be.

Luckily my brains worked better than before and understood…Nick must have looked out for protection from the merciless burning sun…Go and look under the chopper, stupid dumb! My mind told me and I walked there like on auto pilot.

Nick was barely responsive when I found him. He was totally dehydrated and the combination of the lack of water and the hell of pain he was obviously in, had driven him to the edge of delirium but he was alive and that was all that mattered at this moment. How he had made it out of the chopper is a miracle until today.

Nick's comrades worked quick and efficient and it didn't take long and he was ready for transport and was transferred to the nearest Military Hospital.

Grace to Murray's invincible negotiating skills we were allowed to stay with Nick…that was a big relief for us.

The first twenty-four hours were hard and it really doesn't look well. Nick's condition was grave.

He had lots of lacerations and bruises and they had a lot of difficulties to compensate his loss of fluids.

Furthermore he had sustained a severe back injury and it wasn't foreseeable at all if there would be left a permanent damage.

I guess I got my first grey hairs that day. There was absolutely no promise left I could offer to the Lord and so I was prepared as well to team up with the Powers of Darkness in my deep despair!

But my prayers were answered and I don' know if it was the Lord's intervention or Nick's will to survive…he started to fight like a lion!

With the last amount of strength that was left he fought back into life! That was the most beautiful moment in my life.

Nick:

I remember the crash. I thought: 'Holy shit…that's going to hurt'…then everything went black.

When I regained conscious again it was light outside and the sun burned through what was left from the windshield…it felt like behind a burning lens and I was hemmed in the cockpit.

Somehow I managed it to get free and I got shelter under the chopper.

Oh boy, the heat was murderous and the pain was as well but I felt that Cody and Murray wouldn't leave me in the lurch…I only had to hang on!

Sure, if I were allowed to chose, I would like to die in a helicopter…no question. But not necessarily in the desert and it can still wait a few years.

I cannot remember the moment when they finally found me…I guess I was quite at the end of my rope!

But when I opened my eyes the first time when I was clear again, I saw Cody and Murray standing at my bed and I thought to myself: Everything is going to be okay!

Cody used all powers of persuasion to convince me to quit the reserves after this incident. Well, that's kind of weird to ask for something like that in a military institution!

He even demanded that I never climb into a chopper again…that's incredible!

Seriously, the chance to crash down with a chopper in the desert for Joe Schmo might range around 5 %.

How many people lose their life on the road because of a car crash? Funny enough, Cody never asked me to stop driving a car!

But my decision was unshakeable and even Cody could change it! As soon as I was able to walk rather upright again, I would take out the Mimi for a flight!

It is exactly the same with the horse-riding. When you have been pitched you have to mount the horse again…directly. Otherwise you will never do it again!

But Cody really worried me at that time! He was totally jazzed…not he himself!

I didn't understand why…everything had turned to good account. Why wasn't he able to relax?

Cody:

I know Nick since the year one and normally there is nothing that should surprise me. But somehow he is able to put me into blank astonishment.

He is an incredible bonehead and that's okay…without this excess obstinacy he possibly wouldn't be among us!

Murray:

My biggest concern was losing two friends at once. Nick was missing and the chance to find him alive went down with every passing hour and that was exactly the speed Cody's emotional condition deteriorated!

I don't want to think about what would have happened if Nick hadn't made it. I'm sure Cody hadn't survived this loss.

I am so grateful that I still have them both.

There is a lot I am thankful for…the sun, the wind and the sea. I am grateful for my work that satisfies me. But most of all I thank God every day that I am allowed to call Cody and Nick friends…my friends…No they are like brothers to me…only closer!

That's the greatest of all!


	4. Chapter 4

Riptide Chronicle Final Part

Riptide Chronicle Part IV

15. The Nesting Issue

Nick:

Women came and women went away again…sometimes it was serious but no… most of the time it was just a short episode and you separated peacefully.

Cody the poor guy was caught twice…

Janet managed it to break his heart true to the motto: Two are better than one!

They were lovers before we had met…at the time when they were at the college.

Some fine day Janet decided that Cody wasn't the man of her dreams and she ditched him. Well, it broke his heart and I guess that was the main reason why he joined the Army.

At the occasion of a boozed up evening in Nam, he told me the story, well the important parts of it. I think that was the reason why I didn't liked Janet…the chemistry between us didn't worked! Of course I tried my best to deal with her as relaxed as even possible…unfortunately it wasn't enough!

By the way, I can really rely on my gut feeling and it told me when Janet and I met for the first time that this affair would come to a bad end…for Cody!

Unfortunately I was right! Believe me I didn't grudged him his affair and hell yes, I would have come to terms with her anyhow!

My biggest mistake was to try to protect him from Janet. I knew she wasn't the woman Cody wanted to see in her…He was longing for the woman he could start a family with…he was looking for a placid life.

Janet was the wrong choice. She wanted to climb up the greasy pole up to the top and that's what I intended to make him understand.

If I had only kept my trap shut!

Cody and I fought because of her like never before and our friendship nearly broke down.

To convince Cody that Janet didn't suit for a constant relationship was a bit like Don Quixote's fight against the windmills!

My good intentions had raised a storm…or better had set free an inferno and left a bad damage.

It took some time and effort until we were able to deal with each other in the natural way we did before Janet's sudden appearance.

Cody:

Today I know that Nick was totally right. Janet wasn't the right one for me…I didn't wanted to admit it at that time.

Nick had tried really hard to save me from a broken heart…he had talked insistently to me but I wasn't ready to change my mind!

I can be a bonehead from time to time…and during one of his kitchen sink psychology lectures, I simply had enough!

I said things that should have better been unsaid…among other things I accused him to covet me my relationship with Janet. I went so far and assumed that he were inept for a family life. I could bite my tongue off for that!

I really did him wrong and it was again me who put our friendship unnecessarily and dangerously at risk!

Murray:

Uh…Janet! I don't like to remember that time. The friendship between Cody and Nick nearly broke and as a consequence, our partnership would have ended as well…not a nice thought.

Okay, Nick could have let him make his own experience…perhaps it would have been easier, who knows.

But Nick's protective instinct is really well-marked and it was unimaginable for him to watch Cody ruin himself.

Fortunately the damage was kept within limits and after a good fight and a conversation afterwards, they hug and made it up.

Nick:

We have to talk about Sheila as well.

Cody was in a deep identity crisis again when he met this nice woman.

I really liked her but something about her upset me.

Yes, my gut feeling had overruled my good intentions only to see the best in her, easily!

I am so sorry but I was right again.

Sheila was a very poor, ill soul…a schizophrenic personality! Both of her faces couldn't have been more different!

At one point the shy young woman in need of affection and then suddenly, the man-eating vamp!

This experience nearly cost Cody's life. I sat beside his hospital bed like a picture of misery being at odds with myself because I hadn't been able to protect him!

Cody:

If someone had bluntly told me to my face that Sheila was ill…I mean mentally sick, I guess I would have given him a bloody nose!

I would have never believed it. She was so charming and tender and I never had the impression that she was sick or confused…never!

I had to pay this mistake painfully. Good thing that Nick caught me and helped me to get over it!

Murray:

When I first met Sheila, I could have imagined that she was the right one, you know. Nothing, really nothing indicated her severe mental deficits!

I am over grateful that Cody got off lightly.

But it was Nick, who really surprised me…Even though he knew that Sheila's dark personality was responsible that Cody had landed in hospital, Nick took care that she was sent into a mental institution and not into prison. It showed me how much he really liked her and how much he cared for her!

Murray and Gloria

Murray:

Wow, Gloria is every bit a woman! That we got together was the best that could ever happen to me.

First I even didn't dare to look at her.

But when I finally gathered all my courage and tried to confess my love in defiance of all grammatical rules, she simply kissed me. I remember she had me in the headlock…as if I wanted to run away!

But that's not important…now we are a couple and we are incredible happy together, even though certain people call us anarchists. Okay I cannot deny it entirely but we are able to manage our life no matter how hectic it is sometimes…what do you say? Cody…Nick?

Nick:

Murray really surprised us! He is a lady killer!

Murray and Gloria…it sounds like the pure chaos and believe me it is exactly like that and I know what I am talking about. But they are like jack and Jill!

When Gloria and our paths crossed, we were stuck in a difficult case and I want to be honest, without her involuntary help, we had never solved it.

You have to know that everything that Gloria does is kind of involuntary…she can't help it, really!

Well Murray and Gloria fell in love head over heels but it took some doing until they finally realized it.

Either Murray got one of his famous hiccup attacks or Gloria started to hyperventilate…it nearly drove me crazy!

But you know what happens when two anarchists fall in love…you get chaos of the purest kind!

Hey we had a lot of fun…incredible. But you couldn't be sure that you would see the sunlight again!

If you are looking for adventure, thrill and the ultimate kick, just stick to their heels and all your wishes come true!

Together with Gloria and Murray, the banal things become a kind of Russian roulette and you don't even have to lift a finger!

Okay when they decided to get married and start a family, Cody and I were a little afraid.

I mean each of them alone can cause the end of the world because of his clumsiness but together they are a highly explosive mixture!

But it was their firm resolution and so Cody and I started to take measurements against all the cruelties that could destroy their wedding day!

Well Cody was the best man and I was Murray's groomsman…I had the wedding rings. That was absolutely safe!

But Gloria, were not Gloria and so she took care for the necessary dose of chaos.

Cody stylishly guided her to the altar…well at least he tried his very best. But somehow she managed it to get caught in her own trail and landed prone in front of Murray!

I thought that it was a good omen and that Murray would be the boss in their relationship!

You might think there is no escalation! Don't worry.

Well everybody who knows Murray and Gloria was fully aware that it was just the beginning of a chain reaction.

When it was Murray's turn to answer the most important question at all, he answered it with a hiccup attack, what else?

After I had friendly patted his back several times, finally a nearly audible 'Yes I Will 'got away.

The only thing that really made me sad was the fact that the three-tier wedding cake landed on the floor after Murray's and Gloria's fruitless attempts to cut it.

I really like cake and I made significant contributions to the question of flavor.

But it was a great party and thanks to the key players, there was no dry eye left!

When Boz told us a few months after the wedding that was still on every ones lips, that Gloria was expecting…believe me that was one of the most touching moments in my life. I have never seen a happier man before! And he was so proud and so were Cody and I!

First Gloria gave birth to a gorgeous daughter, Allison. And only twelve months later she delivered a double pack…Judith and Alexandra.

But Boz insisted on a son and heir. Honestly, I would have been content with the girls but nobody asked me about my opinion.

Well they finally got Nicholas Allen Bozinsky…it's a mercy!

Murray took me aside a few months after his birth and asked me to make a real man out of him when the time had come…not such a wimp like his father was! I swear it was Murray's direct quote.

I was really shocked and it took me hours to convince him that he isn't a wimp at all!

But Nicholas Allen didn't need me to make a man out of him! Who grows up with three elder sisters knows how to fight and even though he wears the same glasses like Murray does, he is a 'man in full'!

Murray's and Gloria's kids are a real infestation and every time they come to visit us and that happens at least twice a week, the word insurance of contents gets a very significant meaning.

Cody and I would never forget to pay the bill for this benedictory invention.

A lot get broken when the kids, well yes and their parents as well, are on board.

Allison, Judith, Alexandra and Nicky are little devils and it is like herding cats, you know.

No wonder…they are an accomplished combination between Murray and Gloria!

Don't get me wrong, I love these little monsters more than my life and I don't want to miss a single day!

Cody:

Gloria and Murray? Well they really found each other…Boz and Gloria are soul mates!

At the beginning, Nick and I couldn't imagine how they wanted to lead a 'normal' life. Well, to organize a household, to pay bills, things like that. But what is normal at all?

As a matter of fact, they made it somehow.

And they love their children and do everything for them!

The kids are great and I love them…but I haven't found the switch to turn them off, yet!

Murray:

Guys, I know it is hard when we attack you on the Riptide like a locust infestation and turn your well regulated life up-side-down in no time!

But the kids love you and it's the very best for them to visit you.

Well you are the best uncles a child can have and I don't want to lie on you, but Gloria and I really enjoy it when we are allowed to pass the responsibility for these pests to you for a short time.

By the way, we as their parents, cannot stick with the entertainment you provide! Thank you guys!

Nick:

There were two important women who had left traces in my life…my Mom and Josy.

I lost them both and I still have problems to talk about it.

Cody:

Nick isn't a Casanova, not at all. But he affects women in a very special way. He doesn't need to do much, the girls simply melt away!

Others than I, he was never searching for the right one but he met her…Josy.

I have never seen him so happy before. He was softer and the best thing for me was the fact that he didn't search the danger at any cost. I mean the love to Josy had changed him…he had become more cautious and that felt really good for me. My life was so much easier at that time. Without the constant fear that he was about to risk his skin.

After her sudden, violent death it became all the worse.

In those days I thought, Nick would never get over it…well probably he really never did but at least he has learned to live with it.

I'd say it was the most difficult time in our life and Murray and I were under high tension twenty four hours a day!

We were afraid that he would get up to mischief and to be honest, the first days after Josy's death I feared he would commit suicide.

When he announced that he would kill James O'Leary, Josy's suspected murderer, I didn't doubt that he would put his plan into operation, not for a second.

In his deep grief and despair Nick had built up a wall around himself and nobody was able to break through it…not even me!

He was like a machine set on revenge…

Somehow he could sidle of the day when James O'Leary was killed.

When we heard about O'Leary's death we were relieved at first because we thought it would help Nick to get over it easier.

But then the scales fell from my eyes and I realized that Nick had taken the law in his own hands.

I have always been a law-abiding citizen and self justice isn't a solution for me… But I really understand Nick and I cannot blame him for what he has done.

I don't know how I would have reacted in his place.

Anyway, Nick thinks that I don't know what happened that day…but sometimes he looks at me as if he knows that I know!

Murray:

That was the worst tragedy…when two people who love each other and want to marry, get ripped apart so barbaric!

At that time I was sure, he would never made it and I thought he would never smile again…you know he has this unique smile.

It took a very long time until we got our Nick Ryder back but still today, I am not sure if he is just doing us a favor… and deep inside him there is nothing left of the former Nick we loved so much.

Sometimes when he watches the kids playing or when he catches Gloria and me kissing, he has that look in his eyes. So sad and vulnerable and for a few seconds he isn't in our world anymore.

These are the moments when I feel ashamed for all the luck I have, even though I know for sure that he is happy that I am such a lucky fellow!

Nick:

I was never looking for the right woman and when Josy and I first met, I really wasn't on my best behavior!

I had just returned from the reserves and I was tired and in a bad mood…just like always after my duty.

To top it all, my partners dragged me to the annual charity event of the King Harbor Police department…that's where we met.

In other words, we collided. For me it was love at first sight…she was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen.

Unfortunately we didn't play in the same league. She was a medicine and you know I am only a poor PI who flies around bored tourists if the detective business is in a temporarily crisis.

I hadn't any hope that she would accept an invitation but that was only a dream because I was so upset that I was barely able to spell my name.

But chance brought it about that my partners and I were attacked on the Riptide a few days after our first encounter.

I got a fiercely hit on my head and Cody and Boz took me to the hospital despite of my resistance.

I'll give you three guesses who was my physician! Right, it was Josy!

Believe me I was never so grateful for an ugly laceration combined with a concussion.

That was the beginning of the most beautiful time in my life and one fine day I started to think about getting married and having children! Seriously!

But that evening when I wanted to pop the question, I found her death in her house…stabbed by a junkie!

When the autopsy showed that she was expecting, my mind was made up…I would find that bastard who had taken my wife and my child and I would kill him!

I don't know, if O' Leary had only shown the trace of regret…perhaps I had changed my plan and he would be behind bars now.

But he was clinical and inhuman…he kind of insulted Josy and that was defiantly too much to bear.

The only person who knows that I have willfully killed another man was Quinlan and he took this secret to his grave! I owe him a lot for that…it really surprised me that he hadn't called me to account…I had killed a killer…strange isn't it.

Quinlan told me to get my shit together and stay out of his sight…and yes that he would have killed the bastard himself if he had been there earlier…that was all he had to say. Strange… really strange!

I never told Cody or Murray about it. I was too afraid it would destroy our friendship or that they would never be able to trust me again.

Believe me every time I have to look into a mirror…I see myself killing this bugger and the sound of his breaking neck is still in my ears and I feel sick.

It is really hard for someone who would do everything to save a life.

But I had to do what my heart told me…that's not meant as an excuse for what I have done. There is no mercy for it and no absolution as well.

If I have to burn in hell…well, that's how it should be then but I would certainly do it again. Sorry!

But please don't think that I felt better after I had put him to death, how should that work anyway?

And I don't feel better after all those years. I am sure that I will never feel satisfaction and that Josy would have never wanted me to do it.

That is the reason why I never married.

Murray made it better…he made it right.

But I really feel bad about Cody. I'm afraid he has chosen the singlehood because he didn't want to leave me alone…if it is like that Pal…I am really sorry but it wasn't necessary!

16. People get wiser with the years

Nick:

No, we didn't retire at all but to tell it sailor like, our life runs in shallow waters now.

If somebody had predicted that 15 years ago, I would have called him a fool.

But it is true, you get wiser with the years…combined with the experience you have.

Well we founded a security enterprise. Boz takes care of the technical things and that we are always up to date and Cody and I do the mechanics.

Hey we are so busy that we could employ Dooley on probation!

Yes, Kirk Dooley the only person that was able to drive me up the pole in less than ten seconds!

He has grown up as well…He realized that life is more than nearly naked girls, surfing and fun.

You know this knowledge befalls each of us…sooner or later.

The fact I, Dooley developed to the best advantage and it's really a joy to work with him.

Neither Cody nor I have ever fulfilled the dream of an own family…somehow we missed the right time…probably we simply haven't found the right woman! But it is absolutely idle to think about it now.

We are really lucky…Murray shares his big family with us and to be honest it is not the worst thing on earth when you are allowed to close the door behind the Murray-Clan after an exhausting day and you can simply relax!

Cody:

You cannot imagine how nice my life is since we have closed our agency. No fights, no shootings and our visits in the hospital have other reason nowadays!

Seriously, it was the best decision we have ever made and we didn't change for the worst, no it booms!

Sometimes I am a little melancholic because there is no one who shares the same name and I think Nick feels the same from time to time. But this sadness is flown away as soon as Murray and his tribe appear on board and it looks like after a bomb burst only twenty minutes later… believe me… own children couldn't make it better at all!

Murray:

I really got everything I dreamt of…a wonderful wife, the best friends a man can have and a four healthy children full of spirit! Murray Bozinsky, the goofy scientist…who would ever have thought it?

Honestly, I owe it all to Cody and Nick. Without their help and moreover their absolute belief in me and grace to their tireless efforts to make a halfway passable guy out of me…I don't know where I would be today! Thank you so much guys!

The only drop of bitterness is the fact that they both never settled an own family…you know, a wife and children.

In peace and quiet I catch myself thinking that it is my fault…perhaps they were simply too occupied to take care for me…on the other hand, perhaps it simply wasn't part of their plan of life! But I will never tell them about my concerns!

Summary

Nick:

I can tell you one thing for sure…I would do it again…okay with some restrictions.

Each fight with Cody or Murray was like a little death…you say things you really don't mean because you are so angry that your brain is out of order.

But once told, you cannot take it back, it stays in space and when you really don't think of it… it comes back without a warning and a nice evening can turn into disaster in no time!

You get it…think before you talk…it sounds very easy but if you are armed with a hot temper it is like living on the edge.

But I have learned a lot during the years and I'd proudly say … I got it: I think before I talk or fight.

After a double number of a broken nose, I'd say that's a quite good decision!

I want you to get me right, it is not as if I would avoid a fight… a good fight you know, it always depends on the occasion and my chances. But a simple 'piss off' sometimes works miracles!

And please, never stop fighting for the important things in your life…and never, really never for the important persons in your life…you only have this life. Make the best out of it!

Murray once said that a good computer program doesn't grow on trees. You cannot go there and pick it up…it is the same with the friendship.

You have to work on it day by day, month by month and year by year…then it grows and flourishes.

Bad weather and storms may harm it but if it is strong enough, it will survive and recover.

Well, never take friendship for granted and never stop working on it…365 days the year…year after year and I promise ...you'll bring in a rich harvest!

Nick

Cody:

Only a few words at the end. I wouldn't change a single thing.

I have the best friends a man can have and I can say a lot about my life but one thing that is very important for me…my life was never boring!

That's all I ever dreamt of. There were highs and downs and sometimes I really didn't know how to go on. But with Murray and Nick who would go to hell and back with me and for me I can only say:

I am a rich man and that is something that is more than a lot of people can say from themselves!

Thank you Guys!

Cody

Murray:

I don't want to repeat me, but I thank God every day for what he has given me.

Without Nick and Cody, the Bozinsky you know were non -existent! You know…genius and madness are very close together! I give you one try to guess what I would be without them!

This friendship is beyond all description and I simply don't start to explain it!

Murray


End file.
